Lawyers e-Journal

Thursday, Jan. 17, 2013

News from the courts

First deputy named acting probation commissioner

Chief Justice of the Trial Court
Robert A. Mulligan and Court Administrator Harry Spence have
appointed Ellen G. Slaney to serve as the acting commissioner of
probation on an interim basis until a permanent commissioner is
named in the spring. Slaney has served as the first deputy for
Acting Commissioner Ronald P. Corbett Jr., who retires this week
after a two-year term as acting commissioner during which he
initiated management reforms to restore professionalism and
effectiveness to the state's probation service.

Slaney was appointed as a probation officer in Roxbury in 1974 and
became the assistant chief probation officer there for the Juvenile
Court in 1986. She was named chief probation officer for the
Wrentham District Court in 1990 and regional supervisor in 1997,
prior to her appointment as first deputy commissioner in 2011.
Slaney holds a B.A from the University of Connecticut and an M.S.
from Simmons College School of Social Work.

Recent management initiatives led by the commissioner's office
included introduction of performance management metrics and
accountability, a new, validated risk/need classification
instrument, merit-based hiring and promotions utilizing best
practices and enhanced partnerships with criminal justice
agencies.

Last fall, the Trial Court retained Isaacson Miller, a
nationally-recognized firm, to lead the search for a new
commissioner of probation. Mulligan and Spence expect to make an
appointment this spring.